Quote: Smithers99 "Before I respond, as a local resident, I'm going to see if I can take a look at our local nextdoor group to see if there have been any comments. Access to that site isn't my household activity; I get the jobs such as putting the bins out for collection!'"
My reply was going to be that I'd heard nothing negative, including from neighbours, some who have no interest in football but were supportive of the return.
Having read next.door the feedback is even stronger towards my initial thoughts. A couple of comments got blown out of the water, including by those with no interest.
Traffic was one, which to me looked fine. So somebody even posted a photo of the supporters walking down the road and the traffic. The responses were how nice it was and if anything the roads looked quieter. Comments about how nice it was to see families walking together etc. Residents mentioned good business for restaurants/pubs on match days.
Everybody leaving the stadium at the end creates busy crossings for at most 30 minutes. Only issue I heard about (from Wimbledon fans) was some small altercations walking back to Earlsfield station.
Comments about how snarled the roads got on a Sunday Stock car racing day. And it was as all the competing vehicles and spectators drove and parked in the huge car park. Sunday markets were also a traffic overload. That's all gone as there is no parking on Plough Lane.
Crowds can't get much bigger. More in Hospitality (early arrivals) and Away Fans are where numbers can expand. General AFC Wimbledon sections a few hundred more at most when the Ticketing issues are fully resolved. There will always be empty seats that have been sold.
And here's a freebie for the Broncos that some of you will be aware of. The Dons Local Action Group (DLAG). An incredibly successful charity set-up by the Dons Trust to feed those is need during the Pandemic, as well as providing furniture and appliances, It's ongoing and is as simple as handing over a few cans leaving your supermarket. They also collect at each entrance to the stadium on Match Days. Behind the scenes it's a complex operation.
Multiple residents referred to what DLAG has done for the community. Wimbledon Tennis offers nothing. Road closures, excessive traffic, Junior parkrun cancelled etc. AFC Wimbledon give back to the community. Players joining the club need to understand the story of the club and why the community is important. The manager says if they don't he's not interested in having them. Not saying he'd stick to his guns, but I suspect he will. From interviews it is apparent the players understand.
The Broncos need to be their own club. But DLAG is the one area to join forces with AFC Wimbledon. Advertise it, have players spending a couple of hours manning a table outside the supermarket as Broncos players (free advertising). DLAG is far more than AFC Wimbledon, it's ingrained in the community. In yesterday's match programme there is a DLAG page. Two paragraphs to explain the aim of DLAG and the award they received. The remaining 90% of the article describing other clubs community work from Burton to Liverpool. For example a joint Liverpool/Everton scheme won the Premier League award (DLAG won the non Premier League award).
The Plough Lane ground itself isn't in a particularly Residential area beyond the new flats it's part of. Surrounded by the Wandle, an Industrial Area and Card Showrooms/out of town large shops. There is only limited use of the flats currently. It's very cleverly built and residents know what they are moving into. Have Google maps to hand as you will struggle to spot the stadium from any direction and there's an element of the Tardis when you realise what is behind the flats. The front (Plough Lane) of the Stadium is more flats than stadium; it is hard to envisage what is behind it.
